[whynot?]

Hey!
Just last summer I bought a Giant Iguana that, although I’ve had some ok bikes in the past, is really my first real mountain bike that I’m serious about riding.

I bike is absolutely stock but I’m not real happy with the handlebars. I am a kind of short seventeen years old and I feel the bars are too wide for me, and I’ve been thinking of getting new bars and maybe a new stem. So I guess what I’m asking is if someone could give me some info on the pros and cons of different stem and bar widths, lengths, and angles, or maybe even suggest some specific product I should check out. I’ve just been riding simple trails in the area but come spring I would like to scope out some of the rockier and more rooted technical trails hear in Wisconsin.

Any help you could give this noob would be great!
Thanks,
TOM

 

[Jeff 151]

this would be a good product to check out.

 

[whynot?]

Good call jeff! I might just do that, but how would one find the proper width?

TOM

 

[Skookum]

Good call jeff! I might just do that, but how would one find the proper width?

TOM

You want your arms to be forward so it's comfortable and your control will be better. So the wider the shoulders the wider the bars......
also taking a file to the cut bars is a good idea.

 

[mtnbikeair]

Why dont the bars feel comfortable? Is it just because you aren't used to them, or do they actually physically hurt you? I would give it some time before you go chopping on your handlebars. The problem your going to run into is if you cut your bars too short your steering will get very twitchy.

 

[whynot?]

Yeah I should probably just keep riding until I really know what my problem is!

 

[blue]

My old Homegrown HT had REALLY narrow flat handlebars, you'd barely touch it and you would fly off the trail. Usually when you're fairly new to riding you might want to stick with wider bars (Unless they physically HURT when you ride), cutting them down might be like sticking a new pilot into a Sopwith Camel.

 

[VA2SLOride]

Interesting WWI aero-plane reference....random but cool nonetheless....

 

[MikeD]

Interesting WWI aero-plane reference....random but cool nonetheless....

Yeah, the rotary engine in my Turner makes it a handful, too...

 

[lovebunny]

im thinkin of gettin some new bars for my balfa. im actually thinkin i like wider bars. i rode an m1 today and the bars were a bit wider than mine and i liked it. im thinkin of checkin out some eastons. opinions?

 

[The Kadvang]

My old Homegrown HT had REALLY narrow flat handlebars, you'd barely touch it and you would fly off the trail. Usually when you're fairly new to riding you might want to stick with wider bars (Unless they physically HURT when you ride), cutting them down might be like sticking a new pilot into a Sopwith Camel.

Wouldn't a Sopwith Camel be more foregiving than say, an F-14 Tomcat?

 

[PatBranch]

The protapers look good too!

 

[BigStonz]

Hold off cutting...Wider is better IMO

 

[me89]

yeh what they said

 

[whynot?]

Yep, looks like I'll just let it be for now. Thanks for looking out for me!

Now, can anyone tell me anything about stem lengths and angles and their effect on handeling? I assume most of it is just comfort and position on the bike.

Keep it surreal,
TOM

 

[-BB-]

Narrow is better for XC (shoulder width) and wider is better for DH (more stable)